Half of deprived inner-city children 'eat junk food twice a week'

More than half of schoolchildren living in deprived inner-city areas eat fast food or drinks at least twice a week, new research suggests.

Researchers at Newcastle University surveyed 193 children, aged 11 to 14, from Tower Hamlets, which is a deprived borough in London.

Fifty-four per cent of the children said they bought fast food or drinks at least twice a week, with one in ten purchasing such products every day.

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Factors such as age, gender and entitlement to free school meals did not seem to affect children's tendency to buy junk food.

However, youngsters from non-white backgrounds were more likely to consume fast food than their Caucasian counterparts, with seven out of ten children from black ethnic backgrounds purchasing fast food or drinks more than twice a week.

Writing in the journal BMJ Open, the study authors said the findings were concerning and that many of the children were already overweight or obese.

'Actions need to be taken to either limit the ability of these children to access fast food outlets or to change the foods or beverages they purchased at these outlets,' they added.

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